Adjustable cutter for hooked rug materials

ABSTRACT

AN IMPLEMENT FOR CUTTING INIFORM SHORT LENGTHS OF YARN FROM A STRIP OF MATERIAL OR YARN SKEIN FOR USE IN MAKING HOOKED RUGS IS DISCLOSED. ROTATION OF A MEMBER CAUSES YARN TO BE FED OVER A CHANNELED SURFACE BENEATH AN OSCILLATING BLADE IN THE ROTATING MEMBER AND CUT OFF AT A PREDETERMINED POINT IN EACH ROTATION. THE LENGTH OF THE CUT OFF PIECES MAY BE ALTERED BY INSERTION OR REMOVAL OF A COLLAR AT THE HUB OF THE ROTATING MEMBER

Oct. 19, 1971 3, WEST 3,613,238

ADJUSTABLE CUTTER FOR HOOKED RUG MATERIALS Filed June 26, 1970 2Sheets-Sheet 1 so 34 2o 22 I8 FIG. 2

INVENTOR. EMERY C.WEST

ATTORNEY Oct. 19, 1971 c, w s-r 3,613,238

ADJUSTABLE CUTTER FOR HOOKED RUG MATERIALS Filed June 26. 1970 2Sheets-Sheet 2 3,613,238 ADJUSTABLE CUTTER FOR HOOKED RUG MATERIALSEmery C. West, North Hollywood, Calif., assignor to Harold W. Smith andElinore Churchin, fractional part interest to each Filed June 26, 1970,Ser. No. 50,128 Int. Cl. B26b 27/00 US. Cl. 30136 3 Claims ABSTRACT OFTHE DISCLOSURE An implement for cutting uniform short lengths of yarnfrom a strip of material or yarn skein for use in making hooked rugs isdisclosed. Rotation of a member causes yarn to be fed over a channeledsurface beneath an oscillating blade in the rotating member and cut offat a predetermined point in each rotation. The length of the cut offpieces may be altered by insertion or removal of a collar at the hub ofthe rotating member.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1) Field of the invention (2) Description ofthe prior art One form of implement previously devised for cuttinguniform short lengths of yarn from a skein comprises essentially agenerally cup-shaped base, preferably of a Size to be conveniently heldin one hand, and having a rotatable shaft centrally journaled therein.

This shaft is provided With a hub from which a radially disposed armextends; a handle being attached to the outer end of said arm. Adjacentthe hub the radially extending arm carries a fixed blade insert into arecess in the arm adjacent the base.

The closed end of the cup-shaped base is provided with an arcuatechannel underlying the blade in the radially extending arm closelyadjacent said hub. This channel communicates at one end with an apertureextending through the closed end of the cup-shaped base and is ofgradually decreasing depth from that end to its opposite end at which itmergers into the fiat surface of the closed end of the base.

In the operation of the device, one end of a skein of yarn or strip ofmaterial is passed from within the base through the aperture andknotted; the knot lying in the deep end of the channel. The handle isthen employed to rotate the arm over the channel from the deep endtoward the opposite end; the blade engaging the knot during suchoperation and drawing it along the channel so that yarn is continuouslydrawn into the channel through the aperture and wound around the hub.

After several rotations of the arm past the aperture, which will buildup a plurality of strands of yarn wound around the hub between the bladeand the base, the blade will cut through the strand in contact with it,thus removing the knotted end.

The blade then, upon continued rotation of the arm, engages withoutimmediately cutting through, the next underlying strand to carry itaround the hub and draw United States Patent O 3,613,238 Patented Oct.19, 1971 an additional strand through the aperture in a positionunderlying those previously so drawn. As the blade reaches the terminalend of the groove, it will again out through the strand in contact withit, thus forming a short length of material of the length of thechannel.

Additional rotations of the arm repeat this operation providing auniform cut off length of yarn upon each rotation. However, devices ofthis construction previously manufactured have been capable of producingonly one length of cut off yarn pieces and have not always producedclean cuts with different thicknesses of material.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides an improveddevice of the character described in which means are provided foreffecting radial oscillation of the cutting blade during rotation of thehandle to effect clean cut-offs of the underlying material and in which,either alternatively or additionally, means are provided for adaptingthe device to produce cut off pieces of material of any of a pluralityof different lengths.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective viewillustrating the elements of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view partially in a central verticalsection of the device of FIG. 1 as assembled for operation;

FIG. 3 is a detail view in perspective and partially in compound sectionof a portion of the base of the device of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 4 is a detail view in perspective and partly in section of theupper portion of the device of FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The preferred embodiment of theinvention illustrated in the accompanying drawings comprises a base 10which is preferably cup-shaped as shown and of a size to be convenientlyheld in one hand. The base 10 presents a planar surface 12 centrally ofwhich is disposed a post 14 having a portion 16 of reduced diameterextending through a central bore 18 in the base 10 and secured inposition by means such as a screw 20 threaded into the portion 16 andwasher 22 abutting a portion of the base 10 by means of which theshoulder presented at the inner end of the portion 16 is clamped firmlyagainst the surface 12.

-A member 24 is rotatably mounted on the post 14 in contact with thesurface 12 and comprises a hub 26 from which an arm 28 extends radiallyadjacent the surface 12. The member 24 is removably secured in place onthe post 14 by means such as a thumb screw 30 threaded into the post 14.

The surface 12 of the base 10 has formed therein an arcuate channel 32concentrically disposed with respect to the post 14 and hub 26 andcommunicating adjacent one end with an aperture 34 passing through thebase 10. The channel 32 is of gradually decreasing depth from the pointat which it communicates with the aperture 34 to its opposite end 36 atwhich it merges into the planar surface 12 of the base 10.

Carried by the arm 28 in a position overlying the channel 32 is a blade40 having a sharpened edge 42 on the side adjacent the channel 32. Theblade 40 is supported at one end by a pin 44 retained in the arm 28 andat the opposite end by a roller 46 fitting over a depending leg 48 ofthe blade 40 and within a circular cam track 50 formed in the surface 12eccentrically with respect to the central opening 18 in the base 10 (seeFIG. 3) in a location underlying the hub 26 which is slotted at 51 toreceive the blade. The roller 46 thus constitutes a cam follower car- 3ried by the blade and disposed in the cam track 50 for effecting radialoscillation of the blade 40 upon rotation of the member 24. Suchrotation may be conveniently effected by means of a handle 52 secured tothe arm 28 by means such as a screw 54.

Also formed in the planar surface 12 of the base is an additionalarcuate channel 60 concentrically disposed with respect to the post 14and hub 26 radially outwardly of the channel 32. The channel 60communicates adjacent one end with an aperture 62 (FIG. 3) in the base10 and is of gradually decreasing depth from the point at which itcommunicates with the aperture 62 to its opposite end 64 at which itmerges into the planar surface 12 of the base 10. The channel 60, likethe channel 32, underlies the edge 42 of the blade 40. Each channelextends approximately 345 around the central opening 18.

As will become apparent from the description of the operation of thedevice hereinafter, an arcuate collar 70 provided with a slot 72 may beremovably secured in a position surrounding the hub 26 and overlying thearcuate channel 32, as shown in FIG. 2, by removing the screw 30,sliding the member 24 upwardly over the end of the post 14, placing thecollar 70 over the hub 26, and then replacing the member 24 on the post14 and securing the screw 30 back in place. This is done when it isdesired to employ the device to cut longer uniform lengths of materialthan will be cut when the collar 70 is not in place, as described.

In the operation of the device without the collar 70 in place, thematerial to be cut into uniform short lengths is fed into the aperture34 from the interior of the base 10 andthe end projecting above thesurface 12 is knotted. The member 24 is then rotated by means of thehandle 52 in a direction to move the blade 40 carried by the arm 28 fromthe deep end of the channel 32 toward the end 36 thereof. As this isdone, the blade 40 carries along the knotted end of the material,drawing additional material through the aperture 34 into the channel 32.As the knotted end of the material is thus carried back over theaperture 34, the additional material being drawn through the aperture 34assumes a position underlying the strand originally drawn therethrough,raising the latter upwardly against the side of the hub 26. As theknotted end of the material again is drawn over the aperture 34, a thirdstrand of material will be drawn into the channel 32 underlying thefirst two, raising them still further upwardly against the side of thehub 26.

Depending upon the thickness of the material to be cut, whenapproximately three or four strands have been thus built up against theside of the hub 26', the uppermost strand will, as the strands areraised upwardly by the decreasingly shallow channel 32, be pressedsufiiciently strongly against the blade edge 42 to cause the blade,which is being constantly oscillated by the eccentric cam track 50 andcam follower 46, to cut through the uppermost strand. The first suchcutting operation will merely remove the knotted end of the material,but thereafter on each 360 revolution of the member 24, a uniform lengthof the material will be cutoff.

When it is desired to prepare longer strips of material than can be thusprepared with the device, the collar 70 is put in place, as previouslydescribed, being positioned with the blade 40 lying in the slot 72 ofthe collar 70. When the device is thus assembled, the material to be cutis fed from the interior of the base 10 into the aperture 62 instead ofinto the aperture 34 and, the channel 32 being covered by the collar 70,the material will, when knotted, be carried by the blade 40 along thechannel 60 which, being disposed radially outwardly of the channel 32,is necessarily longer. Thus when the device is operated in otherwise thesame manner as described in connection with the description of itsoperation with the collar removed, the strands of material will be builtup against the periphery of the collar rather than against the hub 26,and uniform longer lengths will thus be cut off, one with each rotationof the member 24.

What is claimed is:

1. A device of the character described, having a base presenting aplanar surface, a member rotatably mounted thereon having a hub and armradially extending from said hub adjacent said surface, an arcuatechannel in said surface concentrically disposed with respect to saidhub, an aperture in said base communicating with said channel adjacentone end thereof; said channel being of gradually decreasing depthbetween said aperture and a point at which it merges into the planarsurface of said base, and a blade carried by said arm and overlyingsaidchannel, characterized by the provision of a cam track in said baseunderlying said hub and eccentrically disposed with respect thereto, andmeans comprising a cam follower carried by said blade and disposed insaid cam track for effecting radial oscillation of said blade uponrotation of said member.

2. A device of the character described according to claim 1, furtherprovided with an additional arcuate channel in said surfaceconcentrically disposed with respect to said hub radially outwardly ofsaid first mentioned channel, an additional aperture in said basecommunicating with said additional channel adjacent one end thereof,said-- additional channel also underlying said blade and being ofgradually decreasing depth between said additional aperture and a pointat which it merges into the planar surface of said base, and a removablearcuate collar surrounding said hub and overlying said first mentionedarcuate channel.

3. A device of the character described, havinga base presenting a planarsurface, a member rotatably mounted thereon having a hub and armradially extending from said hub adjacent said surface, an arcuatechannel in said surface concentrically disposed with respect to saidhub, an aperture in said base communicating with said channel adjacentone end thereof; said channel being of gradually decreasing depthbetween said aperture and a point at which it merges into the planarsurface of said base, and a blade carried by said arm and overlying saidchannel, characterized by the provision of an additional arcuate channelin said surface concentrically disposed with respect to said hubradially outwardly of said first mentioned channel, an additionalaperture in said base communicating with said additional channeladjacent one end thereof, said additional channel also underlying saidblade and being of gradually decreasing depth between said additionalaperture and a point at which it merges into the planar surface of saidbase, and a removable arcuate C011 lar surrounding said hub andoverlying said first mentioned arcuate channel.

References Cited Kirsch, D. and Kirsch-Kern, 1., Make Your Own Rugs,N.Y., Watson-Guptill, 1969, p. 8.

ROBERT C. RIORDON, Primary Examiner M. KOCZO, 111., Assistant ExaminerU.S. Cl. X.R. 30- 272

